1. Airline Branding and the Customer Experience
Tony Davis
Gramercy Associates Limited
11th October 2016

2. Airline logos have been amongst the most iconic in history

4. Airline logos have been amongst the most iconic in history
……. but historically airlines have had a poor understanding of brand management

5. Pre 1980s - Highly Regulated Industry
Network and capacity strictly controlled – destinations, frequency, size of aircraft and airlines must be owned by nationals of the home country
Fares and tariffs co-ordinated and agreed between the airlines, pool agreements to share revenues on specific routes
Product controlled through trade association (IATA), size of meals, entertainment, baggage allowance

6. Airlines didn’t compete – they co-ordinated !
IATA trade association acted as cartel
Most airlines and airports were nationalised
Airlines traded on national or regional identity
Used as instruments of foreign and economic policy
Travel agents controlled the distribution process
Airlines lost money

7. Almost every airline name was geographic

8. Absence of competition on price, product and network
Traded on national identity, customs, culture
Patriotism
Safety record
Types of aircraft being flown
Cabin crew

9. Post 1980s – Liberalisation and the introduction of market forces
US deregulation starts in 1979 – consolidation and establishment of national carriers and Southwest/Laker
EU single market extended to aviation in 1992, removal of tariff co-ordination, network limitations, ownership restrictions – Ryanair and British Midland
Bilateral and multilateral open skies agreements, establishment of airline alliances

10. Airlines were now forced to compete
Network freedom including cross border in Europe
Pricing freedom – one way fares
Direct sales – travel agents replaced by internet
Technology replaced paper tickets with confirmation
Airports and airlines were privitised – new capital
Some airlines started to make money !

11. Some “Flag Carriers” tried to cross-borders with new brands

12. Some believed in teaching old dogs new tricks

13. And some believed in starting from scratch with sound business principles

14. Successful airlines became brands not logos
Value for money
Don’t over promise and under deliver
Balance being in the transportation business with the glamour of the “jetset”
Secure loyalty in a competitive market place
Use brand and logo as part of the distribution process

15. Not all airlines got it right
Touch and Go Airlines - Russia
BRA - Brazil
Ransome Airlines - USA
Hooters Air – USA
Vanilla Airlines – Japan
Gandalf Airlines - Italy

16. It’s not just airlines that have identity problems
East Midlands Airport
Useless loop Airport - Australia
Mafia Airport - Tanzania
Black Tickle Airport - Canada
Asbestos Hill Airport - Canada
Fukui Airport - Japan

17. Thank you